April, 1880.] 24 L 



Catoptria cana. Haw. Larva plump, rather flattened, with swollen 

 segments, colour dull pink, head and dorsal plate large and broad, 

 chestnut-brown, anal plate hardly visible. In seed-heads of Ga^'duits 

 Iniiceolatus and other thistles, also sometimes of Centaurea nigra, 

 feeding on the seeds. The eggs are doubtless laid in July on the 

 flower-head, and by the middle or end of August the larva is generally 

 full fed, it then leaves the seed-head and spins a tough papery cocoon, 

 short and dumpy in shape, among rubbish, and remains unchanged 

 within it through the winter and spring, assuming the pupa state at 

 the end of May or in June. The pupa is light brown. In the past 

 season the first specimen emerged on July lOth, and they continued 

 to come out until August, but the season was very late. 



I think that this larva has not hitherto been described. Its at- 

 tachment to thistles is well known, and Mr. Machin reared it from 

 the seed-heads some years ago. 



Catoptria fulvana, Steph. My first knowledge of the larva of 

 this species was from a note by Mr. Machin — " larva in heads of Gen- 

 " taurea scahiosa, spinning up among rubbish," and Mr. Jeffrey wrote 

 to me that he had reared it from Centaurea nigra. I think this must 

 have been an exceptional case, for its attachment to C scahiosa is 

 obvious. Mr. Tugwell reared some very richly coloured specimens 

 two years ago from this plant, found at Folkestone, and I found larvae 

 here iu the limestone quarries. 



This larva is tolerably active, plump, with deeply divided segments, 

 and with a slightly raised ridge on the posterior portion of each seg- 

 ment, colour pale pink, paler beneath, head light chestnut, dorsal plate 

 rather broad, yellowish-brown, anal plate minute, brown. 



In seed-heads of Centaurea scahiosa, eating out the seeds and the 

 pith at their base, in the middle of August. Before the capsule 

 withers and spreads open, the larva is full-fed, and has deserted it to 

 spin a tough drab cocoon under stones or among rubbish, where it 

 seems to remain unchanged until the succeeding June, or even July. 

 In the present late season, the first emerged on August 24th, but 

 usually they would be a month earlier. 



Catoptria Scopoliana, Haw. Larva short and rather broad, but 

 attenuated at the anal extremity, wrinkled, and having on each seg- 

 ment a posterior ridge, colour dull yellowish-pink, paler beneath and 

 between the segments, aod with faintly redder dorsal and sub-dorsal 

 lines. Hairs very short and inconspicuous. Head large, pale chestnut, 

 dorsal plate yery large and broad, pale umber, anal plate reddish. In 



